Author Topic: "Bangin On Wax" review (Read 591 times)

Eihtball · « **on:** October 21, 2005, 10:01:16 AM »

Rating 3.5 out of 5 stars

"Bangin On Wax" is one of those albums that I constantly hear being discussed amongst the West Coast gangsta fanbase, the sort of album that the hardcore seem to universally regard as a classic. Of course, I long ago learned to be suspicious about what the West deems "classic" - gangsta fanboys have a tendency to act as though the "authenticity" of their rap heroes makes them great (I'm still don't see why C-Bo and Jayo Felony are so respected, aside from the fact that they both love to flaunt their Crip affiliations). But since I'm not the kind of person who misses out on shit that other people tell me is good, I figured I'd at least give "Bangin On Wax" a try. Still, I half-expected to find that this album's claim to "authenticity" was the main reason for its popularity.

Fortunately, that's not the case. "Bangin On Wax" may not be as authentic as some might believe (I'll get to that later), but it is certainly has a great deal of talent on display - behind the production if not the MCs' themselves.

I don't know a whole lot about how "Bangin On Wax" was possible, aside from the fact that Ronnie Ron and Tweedy Bird Loc held an audition for gang members to rap on the project, and the best ones were chosen to record. This project was a bit unusual at the time in that it featured the rappers calling out their sets on record - back in those days, most gangsta rappers avoided set-trippin' on record to maximize their paper. Given the hatred that is repeatedly expressed on this album between both sides, it's kinda hard to believe they managed to get together and do a record - of course, the introduction track "Gangsta Talk" kinda addresses this (we hear a massive argument in the studio between the rival thugs that gets settled by Tweedy Bird Loc himself).

If it seems unbelievable, though, there may be a good reason for that. Most of the praise I've heard about "Bangin On Wax" is that it's the most authentic gangsta album around, because of the fact that it features actual Rip Riders and Damu Riders on wax. That, I'm afraid, is complete bullshit. I won't question the backgrounds of these cats, but they do perpetuate all of the same stupid stereotypes about Crips and Bloods that have existed since "Colors" came out (and which many other rappers and Hollywood movies have continued to perpetuate). For one thing, you never hear any of the Crip rappers talk about how much they hate other Crips - it's all just "Fuck Slobs!" ad nauseum. Given the fact that gang violence in L.A. is as much Crip-on-Crip as Crip-on-Blood, you'd think some of these Crips would call out rival Crip sets. The only mention I heard of this is when Bloody Mary (a Blood) says "Crip gangs too busy killin' up each other" ("C-K Ride"). Another stereotype these rappers perpetuate is the whole "colors" thing - as seen on the cover, these muh'fuckas are all dressed head-to-toe in red or blue. Even in 1993, the whole colors thing was played out - you'd think some of them would be wearing sports hats or jerseys to represent their sets by this point. I get the impression this shit was done simply because Ronnie Ron decided mass audiences are too stupid to process the complexities of the gang situation in L.A. nowadays, so he wouldn't let them be themselves. Whatever the case, it stems this album's claim to "authenticity" by a longshot.

But whatever. I'm not the kind of person who gives a fuck about authenticity in the first place. Dope lyrics and beats are what makes me buy albums, and on that level, "Bangin On Wax" delivers pretty well. The album has two halves - the first is devoted to Bloods, the second to Crips (although the title track at the beginning features everyone rapping, Cuzz or Blood). Since all of these cats are (presumably) novices to rapping, they don't do a bad job. Even if they talk about nothing except killing Slobs or Crabs, they at least find enough ways to talk about killing each other to stay interesting. None of them are particularly clever, but they occasionally come up with decent metaphors (such as"I'm a magician and you punk Crab bitches are my trick"), and they always sound menacing throughout (this was clearly in the days before West Coast Gs' wanted to be laid back like Snoop). The only problem is that many of them make their influences too clear in their lyrics - Dogg (who doesn't show up for many tracks) seems to be doing a Too $hort impression on all of his verses, while Sin is an obvious WC impersonator. If there's anyone who stands out on this album, it's probably Lil Stretch and Genuine Draft (AKA Domino). Stretch manages to sound perpetually pissed-off without losing energy, almost like a West Coast Billy Danze or Freddie the Foxx, though I heard hints of Ice Cube in his delivery. Genuine Draft, meanwhile, makes it clear why he would go on to have a successful solo career of his own - he has plenty of personality and lightens up the few tracks on which he does appear.

Musically, this album is solid though again not remarkable. The advant of G-Funk wasn't completely upon the West Coast back when this album was made, so most of the tracks are considerably harder and more up-tempo than anything you'd hear on "The Chronic" - none of those slow, drawn-out bass grooves, whiny synthesizers, or soulful female singers. One of the few exceptions is "Rip A Crab In Half", a somewhat more laid-back mid-tempo funky beat that sounds a lot like "Let Me Ride" (due to its use of the same keyboard lead sample from Parliament's "Mothership Connection" as that song). Unfortunately, there are a few too many unoriginal uses of Zapp samples on this album - especially on the title track (which features an unoriginal and unimaginative re-interpretation of the "More Bounce to the Ounce" bassline) and the single "Piru Love" (a remake of "Computer Love"). There are plenty of very impressive tracks, though, such as "Shuda Been A B-Dog" (which uses a sample of Parliament's "Gamin On Ya" to excellent effect), and "Crip, Crip, Crip" (a very bouncy talkbox-driven track produced by a then-novice Battlecat). None of this music is particularly original or groundbreaking by West Coast standards, but it sounds decent enough and provides good background the rappers themselves.

"Bangin On Wax" may not be a classic, let alone the authentic portrayal of Crips and Bloods it claims to be, but it is still an enjoyable album for what it is - a solid example of West Coast gangsta rap circa 1993. I still think this album is somewhat exploitative - it's pretty obvious that the use of actual gang members is a gimmick more than anything else - but even if it is, at least it exploits well. Worth coping for most West Coast fans.